Prague authorities want building where Palach died turned into museum

Prague City Hall has opened negotiations aimed at buying the building where
Jan Palach died with a view to it being turned into a museum of
totalitarianism, the news website deník.cz reported. The now rundown
former Borůvka Sanatorium on Legerová St. is also where priest Josef
Toufar died after being tortured by the communist-era secret police.

The current owners of the building, which is a short walk from the National
Museum, received permission last year to convert it into a luxury hotel.

Prague’s mayor, Zdeněk Hřib of the Pirate Party, told deník.cz that
the city would abandon its plan if the owners demanded an excessive sum for
the property. The Prague 2 authorities say the location, where traffic is
very heavy, would be inappropriate.

Up to now a space beneath where a statue of Stalin stood on Letná Plain
has been in the frame to house a new museum of totalitarianism.